


Where Are You?

by isinktheshipsisail



Category: No. 6 (Anime & Manga), No. 6 - All Media Types, No. 6 - Asano Atsuko
Genre: Complete, M/M, My First AO3 Post, hope y'all like it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-08
Updated: 2015-01-13
Packaged: 2018-03-06 15:47:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,253
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3139871
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/isinktheshipsisail/pseuds/isinktheshipsisail
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Shion realizes he's an adult, and Nezumi realized he never should have left.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part one

Don't come home. Don't come back to me.

Shion left the note at the now deserted house in West Block. Picking up his jacket and his pride off the cold bed, he limped his way to the door. Blowing out the lantern by the door, he knew that he was blowing out the life he once had.

When he thought about it, he was glad he didn't have Nezumi anymore. Shion was glad that he left leaving him to fend for himself. He would happily rebuild No.6 all by himself...

Cursing his stupidity he started his pre-bed routine. He took a shower, half in a daze, wishing that it were Nezumi's hands and not his own. He slipped on his favorite pajamas, a pair of flannel pants and an old wife beater that used to belong to Nezumi, and sipped at a cup of hot chocolate. He shut the blinds of his window and locked the door. Flipping on a new addition to his room, a mouse shaped night light, he finally slipped underneath his thin blue sheets.

Sleep never came easy. He often tossed and turned for hours, his head spinning with all the possibilities of No.6's future. Thoughts of renovations and parks and rules swam his thoughts like sharks in the ocean, and they never stopped. Tonight was no exception. He was in the middle of tearing down the Moondrop when he heard a knock at the door.

"Shion?" His mother's tentative voice came through the door.

"Inukashi just came by with a message for you. She left though, saying that she didn't want to be here when you read it. Do you want me to slide it under the door?" Shion was definitely curious about the letter. Inukashi never set foot in the Main City unless it was of dire importance. He knew it was important. 

But he was tired. He knew that whatever was in that letter would keep him up for days. It would just be better for him to sleep now, while he could, and read it later.

"Please mom. Thank you. Goodnight." 

"Goodnight, Shion. " He heard her slide the paper underneath the door, and found himself relaxing back into his pillows as the scent of cherry cake drifted through his door...

Five Years Later  
No.6 finally held their first election. And of course, Shion was elected city official. So much had changed in the past five years, and excitement bubbled in his throat as he looked back and compared it to the future. 

The sun was low and the air was brisk as he turned around and locked the big wooden doors. His shoes made a soft clicking noise as he descended the few stone steps. Even at the bottom of the stairs, Shion could still smell the musty odor of the books. It was pleasant. 

His wrist watch rang and he slid his finger over the smooth surface. 

"Yes mother? "

"Will you pick up some cheese on the way home? It seems we have a small rat problem and I want to try to lure them out." Shion nodded, a sudden chill along him, he shivered and pulled his cardigan closer.

"A rat problem? I haven't seen a rat I No.6 for years! Do you know if anyone else is having rodent problems? I may need to take it up with the board." 

Shion heard the jingle of his mother's earrings as she shook her head.

"I asked everyone on the block and no one else has even seen a rat! What luck!" 

Shion told his mother bye and pedalled faster towards the grocery store.

Grocery stores were a new thing for No.6. Before the collapse of the walls there had been shopping centers and s opting outlets, but the only markets were the ones in the West Block, the ones that everybody tried to avoid. Back then, food was just delivered to everyone's doorsteps.

Luckily, the grocery stores took off well and did much to help promote the economy and small business in No.6. Of course, it had taken roughly four years to expand outward enough for factories and more farmland so that the people could be more self sufficient. They were even starting to import and export small goods to the other districts. Linen was the number one export, and meat was the number one import. But with the positives came a slew of negatives.

Not everybody was taking on the transition so well. Some of the older officials saw them as a hindrance and argues that they allowed for too much freedom. Then there was always the ever present problem of technology: what kind of machine would be most efficient to make or harvest this product? Shion had been reaching out to the other districts for help. Although weary at first, they started helping out No.6 technologically; with their help No.6 was growing and becoming the potential it always had. 

As he parked his bike in front of the store, a stray thought went through his head: is Nezumi back? That would explain the rats. It's been five years and Shion had successfully forgotten about the blue haired drama queen, and he wanted him to stay repressed. Pushing back the feeling of food coming up his throat, he went on the hunt for traps and cheese.  
****

Shion couldn't sleep. Every time he closed his eyes he could hear little feet pattering underneath his bed. He couldn't help but regret the traps he set for the supposed pests. Rising up out of his bed, he slipped on his slippers and started to edge his way downstairs. 

His mother had went to bed a while ago. She hadn't been feeling well lately, so she left Shion by himself to close the bakery. It was dark but he knew exactly Were he had set the traps. There were three in total; the first was by the front window, in front of a crack that let in a slight breeze and chilled anyone sitting at that table. Then There was one in the kitchen, next to the supply closet, where mice were known to sneak in before, delivering messages. The last one was in Shion's room, next to his big window. 

Shion felt a little better after the pain in his fingers subsided and he threw them in the trash. But he wasn't reassured. There were rats under his bed and he knew it. But somehow the thought of hurting Nezumi's rats (if they were his) was sickening. Crawling back into bed, Shion picked up an old textbook: The History of No.6. His eyes were shut as he flipped the second page.

Waking up with a book on your face is never fun. Karan laughed as her son came down the stairs with imprints of the pages on his cheeks. 

"Studying? What ever for, Shion? I thought you Were finished for the semester. It's almost Gift Day, don't they let you out for that?" Shion nodded his head as he kissed his mother on the cheek.

"Yeah, we're out at the end of the week. I just couldn't sleep last night." He hesitated.   
"Mom, do you remember... Nezumi?" Karan's face visibly paled, and Shion could see his mother's hand start to shake. She nodded her head, her hand coming up to her forehead to brush away a piece of hair. She left flour behind.

"Yeah, I remember him. I never met him, but you made him seem like a good guy until...

"Anyway, why do you ask? Do you- do you think he's back?" Shion found the floor tiles to be very interesting. His mother started muttering under her breath.

"I will not let him near... but Shion... depressed... what happened to the rat traps?"

"I don't mom, but if he is..." a tear slid down Shion's cheek.

"If he is I hope he stays the hell away from me!" Shion's yell surprised Karan. She watched as her son ran upstairs with a sad look on her face. She turned and looked out the bakery's windows.

"Nezumi..."

Meanwhile...

What the hell did that airhead mean by 'don't come back to me?' He made a promise to, didn't he? Did....Shion change his mind? The blue haired man paced back and forth in his old place of residence, dust kicking up around him, causing him to stood and wheeze every once in awhile.

He heard a chattering noise outside his door and was surprised to see three little rats squeeze in between the cracks of the floor and the door. They raced you to Nezumi and up his arm to whisper in his ear. He turned pale at what the rats Were telling him. On the verge of tears, he sunk to the floor.

"Am I... am I too late?" He buried his head into his hands, his mind flipping back to the promise he had made his white haired friend. He promised to come back, and he did. Was he really too late? Could Shion really have moved on without him? 

His mice stood on the old couch and watched their master pace back and forth, nervously muttering to himself. They looked at each other with knowing eyes and hopped down off the couch, stopping at the line Nezumi was pacing. They started chattering. 

"I know, I know I left five years ago! I lost track of time, okay? Yeah, I probably should have responsed to Shion's notes, but he deserved to live a life without me. I didn't want to drag him down. Was he really that upset?" The rats nodded in unison. Sighing, Nezumi ran his hand through his hair. He sat on his old bed and frowned when it creaked out a complaint. 

"I have to see him. I need to work this out."


	2. Part two

Nezumi 

Nezumi laid down on the old, dusty bed. He slipped his shoes off and watched as the fell to the floor. Lighting the lamp on his bedside table, it threw shadows across his old room. His bookshelves were still the same way he left them. Shion hadn't taken any of his books. Not even Romeo and Juliet.   
He shook his head and wiped his hair out of his face. His hair was getting too long. Shion would have made a fuss about it if he were here. At that thought his chest started to hurt. If Shion was here...

Looking back, Nezumi realized he had no real reason to leave. Him and Shion were doing great on their own, and Shion had successfully brought the wall down. Shion was alive, but looking a little worse for wear. Why did Nezumi leave? 

He knew why. Because he was a coward. He liked, possibly even loved, Shion in his own special way. Shion was innocent, kind, air-headed and stubborn. He was opposite of Nezumi, and somehow his white haired friend had managed to trust everyone upon first contact. How he was still alive was way behind him.

Nezumi was scared of how close he had become to Shion. Creating ties with someone, with anyone, would lead to an early death; he knew that from experience. 

He was also afraid that he would hurt the younger male. He was sensitive, Nezumi knew that, and by leaving he thought he was sparing the others feeling. Oh, how wrong he'd been. He hurt Shion bad, he knew it, and there was only one way to fix it. Head to see Shion.

Jumping back out of bed he reached into his old knapsack and pulled out an old pencil and a scrap of paper. Scratching out a note on the paper he shuddered. The room was much colder without Shion's warmth.

'Baka. Meet me at the old theater. I'm sorry-N ' 

Nezumi erased the last part and folded it into a capsule on the rat's neck. He didn't have to tell them where to take it. They already knew.

Now all he had to do was wait. And he hated waiting...

Shion 

He was an idiot. He had probably left his mother worried about him. But oddly enough, he was not in the mood to care.

Shion had managed to remain upbeat the past few years, much to everyone's chagrin. He always stayed involve with both parts of the new No.6, both west block and the inner city. Of course, now they were called the outer city and the inner city. Shion was trying to get the bored to change them to something less...discriminatory,but the board insisted they had better things to take care of.

Shion laid in bed, staring at the ceiling, thinking of the council . Anything to get his mind off of Ne- the pest plaguing his thoughts. He made a mental note of things to take care of work the next day. He had to organize his filing systems, approve the plans on a new elementary school, and go over the security plans at the airport. Then, he had to go to the outer city and help make records for all the citizens of what used to be West Block. Years eater, and they still hadn't had an accurate census of everyone. 

In the back of his mind, Shion wondered if he would be the on to take record of Nezumi. He slapped his head. Of course he would! He was one of the few people who had actually volunteered to help take records! Of course if the council had more positions (Shion made note to bring it up in the next meeting) he would have a smaller chance of having to see his ex-friend. 

There was a knock on his door. A plate of food slid in through the slot on his door. Shion laughed at the irony.

Here he was, a grown man in charge of an entire city, and his mother still cooked for him and brought his food in on his favorite blue plate.

Maybe that was the problem, Shion mused. He needed to be independent. He had to stop relying on everyone else; he needed to be by himself. Only then would he be out of Nezumi's shadow. It was a rough theory, but it was worth a shot.

Shion  
A few days later... 

Shion heard the pattering of feet again as he got back into the bed. Pulling the covers off of him, he got out of bed and stretched his back. He heard little popping noises as he reached towards the ceiling of his room. The mice were back. And he knew exactly what they wanted.

He bent over the bed, and felt underneath it with his bare hands. As he pulled his hand back from underneath the bed he felt three little pieces of fur climbing up his fingers and his arm.

"Moonlit? Cravat? Hamlet? What are you guys doing here? I haven't seen you guys in years! That must mean that you-know-who is back." Rubbing the mice, he got up from his knees and set the mice on the edge of his desk. The first little mouse, Hamlet, held a capsule around his neck. Shion knew what it was.

And he refused to take it.

"No! I promised myself I would never talk to him again! If you guys just came to deliver the letter, you can take it write back to him and tell him I don't want to talk to him. Tell him that he was out of my life as soon as he left. Tell him..."

Shion sighed, and ran his hand through his white hair. He did not know how to deal with this. He did not know how to handle the emotion that was slowly building up from his stomach and into his throat. Should he tell his mother? Should he just ignore him? The thought of actually meeting up with the old friend briefly crossed his mind. He could only imagine how awkward it would be, and how he doubted that his blue hair friend would even apologize. He would probably just call him an airhead like usual, and then say something demeaning about his intelligence. He doubted that Nezumi had changed.

Reluctantly, he untied the capsule from Hamlet's neck. With shaking hands he opened up the pill, and straightened out the small piece of paper inside of it. He read the note to himself. 

Nezumi really was back. And he wanted to meet him in the old West Block theater. Should he go? He decided to measure the pros and cons.

Well, if he went he would be able to see the young man once again. But knowing Shion, he would cry and then the older man would make fun of him. And he didn't want to go through that... again. Shion could also see himself running up to Nezumi and jumping into his arms. Just thinking about it embarrassed him!

In the other hand, he would be breaking a promise to himself. A promise that he made years ago, that he would have nothing to do with the rat ever again. And also the promise he made to his mother. She knew how heartbroken Shion was after he left. And she made him promise that he wouldn't go in search for him. But, technically he didn't go out to find him... Nezumi found him instead.

Shion got out of bed and turned on the overhead light. He pulled out a few more boxes, and he began to pack up the rest of his stuff. Since he was awake now, he figured he might as well do something productive. He doubted he would go back to sleep tonight. 

Walking over to his desk, he picked up the paper with the new apartment circled in red. It was a decent apartment, 2 bedrooms with a small kitchen and a small living area. It was relatively cheap, and with his new position on the council, he would easily be able to pay his rent and have enough money left for food and other necessities. It was also closer to the middle of the inner city, so he had a smaller commute to work, which meant he could even sleep in a few minutes later.

The mice still sat on his desk, and watched him as he worked. He paced back and forth, back and forth, carrying heavy boxes filled with books to the door. Glancing over at the clock, he noticed how late it was. it was 2:30 in the morning, and he had had no sleep. He had to be at work in three and a half hours! He was going to have a long day tomorrow.

Meanwhile...

Nezumi 

The mice came back a few days later. For the past 3 days Nezumi had been walking over to the old theater, or at least where it used to be, and waited for around 2 hours for Shion to show up. But he never did. So naturally, he was not surprised when the mice came back with the report.

"What? Why won't he meet me? I guess... " he stomped his foot.

"I guess I'll go to him then."

It was a restless night. All his nights had been restless without Shion. But he was so close now, so close yet he wasn't there. The nightmare seemed to be worse that night. 

It started out like it normally did; Shion would be combing his hair, his brown hair,in the mirror in their too small bathroom. Nezumi would come up behind him and place his hands on Shion's hips. Taking the crude brush from his hands, Nezumi would start to brush Shion's hair.

"You must be used to this," he'd tease, "somebody else doing your work for you." Shion would turn red and stick his tongue out in the mirror. Nezumi would grab it between his thumb and forefinger.

"Eww Nethumi! Thath groth! " Shion always tried to push the older man off of him. Nezumi would laugh and brush his hands on his pants.

"You're hair is done your majesty. Now, would you like to join us at the dining table? " he ducked out of the bathroom.

While Nezumi was setting the table, the screams would start. The bathroom door would slam shut, and Shion's screams would reach a new,higher pitch. Nezumi dropped the bowls and the soup and would run to the bathroom, kicking it and hitting it with his shoulder, trying to knock it down. It never worked.

Nezumi could hear scratch marks from the other side other door, and would occasionally see a finger or two come out from underneath the door.

Eventually the banging would stop. Nezumi would be in tears by then, and Shion would be reduced to sad gagging noises. Blood leaked like a puddle from under the door.

Finally, the door would open. Usually, Nezumi never saw this part, but that night he did. Shion was on the floor, skin and hair white as winter, but his scar...

His red scar would be throbbing, ripping his skin apart, snake-like in it's movements. I wriggled underneath it's skin, the ripping noises seeming to motivate the snake as it ate away at Shion.

Nezumi jolted out of bed. He wasn't one to cry usually, but he found that he couldn't stop. The tears streamed down his face axis the mice shirked loudly in the background. 

"Oh, Shion. Shion!" He rocked himself back and forth on the bed. 

The mice lost count of how many minutes he stayed like that, curled up in a ball on his bed. After what seemed like hours Nezumi passed back into slightly less restless sleep.

"Shion..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading along! Don't be afraid to comment and tell me what Im doing wrong or what you don't like...I don't mind!


	3. Part three

Nezumi 

To say that it was cold outside would be an understatement. Frost had taken a liking to everything in sight; little white powdery flakes covered everything from his door handle to the decrepit stairs in front of his home. The moon was out but not visible, hiding behind the hazy clouds up in the sky.

He pulled his scarf tighter around his neck and wrapped it around his mouth and ears. This did nothing to keep him warm, but Nezumi was numb anyway. A little cold never hurt anybody.

He blew out the lamps in his room before leaving it, shutting the door behind him as he left. He was too nervous to eat breakfast, but somehow had the stomach to chew his too long hair as he started the trek to No.6. Nezumi had no idea what time it was, but the sun wasn't out. He hoped that it would be by the time he reached his destination.

Hands deep in his pockets, he was even deeper in thought. Scenarios of how the day could play out looped in his head like a record, and nothing he thought of could make the outcome for them any better. He was refusing to acknowledge the truth; that it had been quite a while since he last had seen Shion, and that, telling by his lack of presence at the theater, he probably did not want to see him. 

But it was too much to risk. What if Shion secretly did want to see him? The possibility of that was slim, but the fact that there even was a possibility was enough for Nezumi. He sped up.

He never expected to see what he saw as he walked to No.6. A lot of the area had been torn down and rebuilt from scratch. Of course, they hadn't made it all the way to his old home, but the amount of progress made was astounding. He could already tell, just by looking at the buildings, that they were way more complex than anything West Block had seen. Could Shion be behind all of this? It was almost too good to be true.

The old areas had been rebuilt. The new neighborhoods were clean and pristine. Instead of run down huts, there were nice apartments, at least two or three stories high. There were a few neighborhood houses, that looked like they were out of some old history book. They had very sleek designs and looked very modern, but Nezumi could tell that Shion had a hand in the design of the building. They were brick and small but each one look to have been able to hold at least 4 people. He could see smoke coming from chimneys in the majority of them. There were lights on in some of the apartments. He wondered in the back of his mind if anybody he knew was living in the apartment. Inukashi, Rikiga, Karan the little girl Shion used to read to...

It was in these thoughts that he realized how much he had missed. 5 years didn't seem like very much time at first, but as he looked at all the renovations done to his old community, he realized what had really happened in those five years. Shion had left without him and matured a great amount. Shion didn't need him anymore. 

It was this thought that stopped him in his tracks. He didn't need him anymore. What was the point in going to somebody who didn't need you? He wondered if that's how his white-haired friend had thought the whole time. He always complained about being useless around the house and how he had nothing to contribute to. But Nezumi would always just brush it off. He'd say something like, 'oh you're just an airhead. You wouldn't know how to do this.' He remembered calling him 'his majesty', and making fun of the way he seemed to know little about surviving, and taking care of himself. But maybe Shion knew more than he gave him credit for.

He wasn't ready for this.

"Hey mister! Would you like to come in and warm up? It's kind of cold outside."

Snapped out of his thoughts he followed the voice that was beckoning to him. He walked a few steps to his right and came upon a cafe. A banner above the cafe read 'Cafe Select' , and as he walked in the doors the smell of coffee drifted out towards him. He sat in a booth near the door. As soon as he sat down in the comfortable leather seats, a waiter came up to his booth.

"Nezumi? I don't know if you remember me or not but, your friend used to read to me and my brother when we were younger. Its me! Karan!" 

Nezumi looked up at the waiter and noticed her short brown hair and light green eyes. She couldn't have been anymore than 12 or 13, but he knew she had done a lot of growing up. Even the air around her was more mature.

"Yeah, I remember you. It has been a long time, but it's nice to see an old face. Tell me, how are you? How's the rest of West Block? What have I missed since I've been gone?" Nezumi needed answers before he was able to confront Shion. Karan smooth down her burgundy skirt and sat down across to him. He took this time to look around the cafe.

The walls were painted a nice light brown color that went well with the landscape paintings on the wall. The booths were evenly spread out, no more than six or seven in the entire cafe, wooden tables with four wooden chairs around each one. It wasn't full in the cafe, but there were a few families there, and about 3 kids who were sitting around a fire place in the corner. As as soon as you walk in, you walked straight into the ordering bar, upon which set a cash register and a jar labeled 'tips'. There was a small menu above the register, offering a special on hot chocolate and hot teas and hot soups. Nezumi figured Shion would love a place like this. Karan started talking.

"Well, after Shion took the wall down...

Shion 

He grunted in frustration. This was the third time today he had been cut by a piece of paper, and the first time he had stapled his tie onto a stack of papers. His mind just wasn't in the game today. His stomach was twisting around and around, like it had been all week. He knew something was going to happen today, he just didn't know what.

As he walked back to his desk he reminisced over everything he had accomplished. He rebuilt West Block from scratch, and he found a way to bring the people together again. He remembered when he first went to West Block and tried to reconstruct the community. A lot of them were reluctant to accept his help, but in the end it all worked out for the better. He introduced businesses, better homes, running water and electricity to many parts of West Block. It took him 3 years to finish building the six or seven two story apartment buildings, and approximately two years to build over 50 houses for the families in need. He just recently finished building the first Elementary School in West Block, and he was planning on starting the building of an orphanage in a few months. All in all he had high goals for the rebuilding of West block. He had high aspirations for what was now called 'the outer city'. 

Sitting back down under the desk, he picked up his phone and called his secretary.

"Ryan? Did you make copies of the old files like I asked you to? Ok you did? Will you bring them up to me when you have the time? Thank you."

A major part of his job was entering the secrets of the old No.6, which included the searching of the Moondrop, and the looking over of thousands and thousands of old files. Unfortunately, a lot of the old files have been written in even older English, but thanks to Nezumi, he was able to decipher some of the harder texts.

Nezumi... thinking about him made his heart hurt. He'd be lying if he said he didn't want to see him again. Head in his hands, he gazed out the window. Where are you? Was I right to assume you wouldn't come see me? Was I right to assume that you really don't miss me? Won't you come and save me? 

Shion was really starting to think about breaking his promises. He really needed to see him. And he needed to see him soon.

That night he went back to the bakery and stayed with Karan. His new apartment seemed colder without his mom, and he laughed at how ridiculous he sounded. Something was telling him in the back of his mind, that he needed to be in his old room tonight, that something would happen, a miracle, and he did not want to miss it. And he was right.

The shutters in his room started to shake. He was confused at first. Did the forecast predict wind or a thunderstorm? He was pretty sure that it was only supposed to snow today. So then what was that at his windows? Creeping along the walls of his old room, he slipped his cold feet into a pair of pale blue slippers. Tonight Shion had the pleasure of having Cravat as his company. Cravat scuttled up Shion's fingers and sat on his shoulders as he inched his way closer to the shaking windows. Unlocking them, Shion peeked out into the darkness.

"Who the hell opens up their windows in the middle of the night?"

*****

Shion

Time seemed to stand still. Neither one knew what to say to the other. A quiet tension hung about in the air around them. Shion made the first move.

"H-hey Nezumi." Shion's cheeks turned as red as his scar. He found his slippers oddly interesting in that moment. As he looked down he realized he was under dressed for this occasion.

"Oh!" He hurried to cover himself. In his defense it was hot in the room, so he decided to just wear his boxers. He heard Nezumi cough. He looked up and his eyes met with silver ones. 

"Please, don't cover up on my account! I must say though, your majesty, boxers are a huge upgrade from the tighty-whiteys you used to wear. Tell me, do you feel like an adult now?"

Shion narrowed his eyes. He felt his hand twitch. He didn't fully comprehend what had happened until he felt his hand throb. The pain egged him on even more.

"Cut the bull crap Nezumi. Stop acting like an immature teenager. It's been five years; I thought that maybe you would've grown up in that time. But nope! Still cynical. Now tell me why you're here before I do it again!" Shion wasn't used to being... angry. But that's all he felt as his palm connected with the side of Nezumi's face. 

He was shocked at his behavior, but he composed himself within a few seconds.

"Why are you here Nezumi?" Shion was breathing hard. He didn't notice his bedroom door creaking open just an inch. He watched as Nezumi strolled to his bed and sat down towards the edge. Nezumi sat with his head in nodded hands, seeming to wait for Shion to calm down. Slowly, he lifted his head and made eye contact with Shion again.

"Shion... it's been five years. You really have grown up a lot haven't you? Karan told me that you had matured, but I couldn't see it. Haha! " Nezumi chuckled. His eyes clouded over as he looked at Shion.

"I never thought that you would ever be able to hit someone. And with such force! Oh, what a day indeed! " Nezumi sobered you, just a little.

"You broke your promise to me Shion." 

Nezumi's voice broke towards the end of his sentence. His voice was wavering, shaking physically; only then did Shion get a good look at him.

His hair was long, too long, curling at the base of his neck. His eyes were still the deep silver he used to know, but they were surrounded by bags and little tiny wrinkles that aged Nezumi a few years. His lips were chapped, and Shion noticed a cut around his nose. Overall, he looked...tired.

"Shion...come here." Shion shook his head. He crossed his arms over his chest.

"No, Nezumi. You still haven't told me what you're doing here."

"I'm here to see you of course."

"But why? Why now Nezumi? I needed you years ago, I don't need you now." Nezumi flinched as if he had been hit, again. The concept of Shion not needing him was painful, like stepping on hot nails. He got up to his feet slowly.

Nezumi 

Shion... didn't want him. Shion didn't want him. Shion didn't need him.

The thought kept circling and circling around in his head. He was too late, and now Shion didn't need him.

"Shion, please! Just, let me explain why-"

"Why it took you so long to come back? Please, do tell." The sarcasm in his voice hurt. Shion really had matured in the past five years, and even his comebacks were witty and sharp and quick.

"I was wondering around. Sleeping outside and skipping through towns. I visited No. 4 and No.5 and found a part time job a t a library in No.2. There was always something for me to do, always somewhere for me to go.

"After by first year though, I noticed something was wrong. I... I was lonely. Sure, I had Cravat and Hamlet and Moonlit, but you weren't there. Of course, I didn't realize what was missing until the mice started talking about you. I had half a mind to send one back to you with a note, just to tell you I was okay.

"But I couldn't. I was selfish. I didn't want to talk to you unless you were really there. I figured that it wasn't worth it, wasting my time trying to tell your majesty why I had left. And plus, I didn't want to open a route of communcation between us. I didn't want to talk to you."

Nezumi knew how out of character he sounded, but he had to explain to Shion. He had to show him why...

"Nezumi, why did you leave in the first place?" While Nezumi was talking, Shion had walked over to the bed and sat next to him, Indian style on the bed. He could feel the younger man's heat pouring off of him in waves. 

"If I said I knew why, Shion, I'd bee lying."

"Oh." It was quiet in the room. The three mice fell asleep on one of Shion's slippers, long deserted by the shutters. Nezumi felt a weight upon his shoulders, and soon after, light snoring reaches his ears.

Shion was asleep on his shoulder. 

Smiling, Nezumi laid back in the bed. He wrapped Shion in his blanket, and peeled of his shoes, his scarf and jacket with one hand. Shion curled up into his side, his face burrowing in his neck. Nezumi's neck tickled with every exhale of Shion's breath.

Sighing to himself, he drifted off to the best sleep he's had in five years.

Shion

"You're still a fitful sleeper." 

Nezumi was sitting at a chair in Shion's bathroom. Shion pointed the newly acquired bruise on his thigh. He was lifting up the leg of his boxers. Nezumi's cheeks were red.

"P-p-put your boxers back down airhead! You shouldn't be comfortable pulling your boxers up around me!" Shion laughed and pushed Nezumi's head back into the sink. He felt him tense up beneath his hands.

"Calm down Rat! It's just a little water and soap! You'll be looking like yourself in no time!" Nezumi scoffed beneath him.

"And how do I know I can trust you?"

"Well, I've been cutting my own hair for the past 3 years. Look at it. I promise you, you'll look fine. Now sit back, and relax."

Shion started running the water from the sink. He loved heard his friend hair with the shampoo he had next to him. He gently ran his fingers through the dark, dark blue hair of Nezumi. Nezumi twitched underneath him,and let out a satisfactory sigh. Shion hummed a tuneless tune.

"My my Nezumi! Your hair is stupid! How long has it been since you washed it?" 

"That's none of your business. How long are you going to stand there and just shampoo? Shouldn't you be conditioning by now?"

Shion shook his head where he can see him.

"No, I need to rinse this out first. It might be a few minutes before I start to condition. I want to make sure your hair is as clean as it can get! And that might include me shampooing and a few times. So, don't complain. Unless you want to do it for yourself?"

Nezumi shook his head. He let out a mock grunt of frustration.

"Just hurry up and finish. You haven't even begin to cut it yet. What the hell have I gotten myself into? "

A few days ago they were still in me. But they've made up since then. Shion let him stay over at his new apartment. It was big enough that each one of them can have their own room, but they were used to sharing a bed, so they still do.

Shion introduced him to his mother. At first she was shocked, and highly upset that the man who hurt his son was back. But after a few minutes of talking and eating and apologizing, she started to see why her son was so into him. he was charming in his own way, he wasn't afraid to tell you that too.

Living Nezumi wasn't too bad. It was fun to be the one to provide for the other for months, being as how Nezumi didn't have a job yet. A thought of unspoken tension still hungry air, but he was trying to let it go. He was trying to give him a second chance.

"-ion. Shion! Snap out of it! Are you back now?" In the process of zoning out, he had spilled water all over his shirt. He laughed it off.

"Sorry! I was just thinking about how different it is living with you now as it was 5 years ago. I get to be the provider this time! And you still don't have a job. So who's mooching now?" He smirked and watched Nezumi narrow his eyes.

"I m not looking! You offered to let me live with you! You can't take it back now! And plus, I've been looking for a job, but this overdeveloped city has made it almost impossible for me to get a job at a decent place. All the jobs are taken by the other citizens. What am I supposed to do? The theater isn't done until next month, so I still have awhile to go before I start there. What more do you want from me?"

Shion shook his head and continued to wash his hair.

It was true, Shion had proposed a theatre be built too. It went through the board and it was due to be finished by next month. Nezumi dubbed it as his favorite project of the new No. 6. Shion managed to get him a job there. Now they just had to wait.

Waiting. Shion hated waiting. He was a man of action, and this Nezumi knew more than anyone. Shion had waited five years for Nezumi, and sometimes he still want sure whether or not he fully forgave him.

If anyone had told him that he was coming back, he would not have believed them. If anyone had told him that he would be washing and cutting Nezumi's overgrown locks, he would have called them crazy and referred them to a mental health clinic.

Yet, here they were. 

Somehow, for some reason, Shion forgave him. It was never in his heart to hold a grudge against him..forgiving Nezumi had been easy...

Shion woke up warmer than usual. He thought he was sick at first, because surely his temperature regulated room would have notice the sudden ascension of the temperature, but it hadn't, and Shion was sweaty.

The next thing he had noticed was the heaviness on his chest, and how he couldn't move his legs. He heard a chirping room his left. He opened his eyes and watched as three mice climbed over to him. They ran over to his head and chirped in his ear, and then ran towards his chest. Then he saw the reason for his state.

Nezumi had fallen asleep on him. He was lying almost spread eagle on Shion, his head to the right of his as their chests met in the middle; but Nezumi had his legs pinned. He tried to push the heavy male off of him.

"Stop moving airhead! I'm trying to get my beauty rest."

"Nezumi you're crushing me!" With on final heave, he pushed Nezumi on to the floor. As Shion sat up, he noticed how sore he was.

"You're still a fitful sleeper."

Nezumi glared at him from under his lashes. Shion blushed.

"You know, you didn't have to push me off the bed like that. Don't you think I deserve an apology?" Nezumi was stalking towards Shion, a strange glint in his eye.  
Shion backed up towards the bed.

"I'm sorry Nezumi, really.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first AO3 post,and I hope you guys like it! Leave a comment about what you did or don't like,and tell me things I need to fix.


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